Page 42 of Flip the Script


Font Size:  

I wait for Minjee to blink, and then swing my arm. Minjee ducks well clear from my hand, so clear that it’s definitely not going to look realistic, and especially not on camera.

We try a few more times, but they all look obviously fake.

“Maybe try a bit faster?” Minjee suggests.

“Okay.”

She blinks. I swing. This time, my fingertips make contact with her cheek.

“Shoot!” I say. “Sorry.”

Minjee only laughs. “Totally fine. Like I said, I don’t care if you accidentally hit me. That was definitely more realistic, though, so try it again like that! I’ll try to dodge faster.”

This time, my fingers come so close to Minjee’s cheek that I can feel her body heat,withoutmaking contact with her skin.

“Perfect! We’ve got this.”

“Awesome!”

We high-five. We’re both grinning ear to ear. Acting together feels so natural, like we’re back in school practicing skits. When I’m with Minjee, it really isn’t hard to have fun. I hope we can keep up this energy for the real thing.

“Okay, we’re ready to go,” says Director Cha. He must have seen us practice because he gives us an amused look. “Sorry for the wait. We thought we were ready, but there was something wrong with one of the lenses. The issue is fixed now.”

When it’s time to get into our places, I walk through the doorway of the main gates of the palace, which is where I’m supposed to enter through with my entourage of royal servants.

I bow to all the actresses who are playing my servants while we’re waiting for the director to call action. They give me friendly waves in return. Even though they’re my servants on-screen, they’re all women around my mom’s age. I want to treat them with the utmost respect.

“All right, action!” shouts Director Cha.

The ladies pick up the long skirts of my hanbok to help me walk up the steps and through the gate into the palace. We stride into the courtyard, and I keep my head held high as I survey my surroundings. My directions for this scene are simple yet spicy. Slap Danbi and tell her off for hanging out with Hyun. I’ve got this.

Feeling every bit like some mean girl in a high school drama show, I storm as quickly as I can in Minjee’s direction. Minjee, as Danbi, takes a step back, a scared yet resolute look on her face.

But when I meet her eyes, Minjee winks. The camera’s on me, so it won’t capture her expression, and it takes all my effort not to smile. By the time I’m standing in front of her, though, Minjee’s face is dead serious again, since her face might be visible in the periphery of the shot.

She greets me with her head bowed. I keep my nose pointed up to the sky. In this lifetime, Danbi is a maidservant while my character is a princess. I give her my best steely glare.

“My maidservants spotted you leaving the prince’s chambers late at night. What could you possibly have had to do there?”

Minjee glares up at me, eyes flashing. Her gaze is so intense that it takes all my effort to not flinch away. As we’re standing there, practically nose-to-nose, I linger on the little details on her face I wouldn’t normally get to see unless I was this close up. Her mahogany-brown eyes. The light freckles across her cheeks.

I’m supposed to slap her after her next line. I get ready.

“The prince sought out my company,” Minjee says. “I was there under his orders.”

She blinks. I swipe my hand. She dodges perfectly, cutting it close enough that there are small gasps from the crew members.

“How dare you insinuate such things about the prince?” I yell. “I’m sure he had a good reason for asking you to be there. Repent before you find yourself kicked out of the palace.”

I wish I could scrub my mouth with soap. I have no idea what direction the show was supposed to go in before they decided to add Minjee into the script, but I wish they hadn’t made my character so... petty.

I turn around like I’m supposed to, and my entourage follows me across the courtyard. I don’t totally leave the scene, though, because at that point Minjee comes in with, “With all due respect, agissi, you speak too harshly. And you struck out unfairly. We were just talking. Nothing more. Please ask the prince about what happened. If his words counter mine, I will gladly leave.”

Chills go down my spine at the quiet resolve in Minjee’s voice. The lines sounded so resigned when I read them in the script, but her tone gives them an edge that changes their meaning entirely.

I wish I had better lines to counter her. But my lines stop there. I’m just supposed to walk away as if I didn’t hear her. And so, that’s exactly what I do until Director Cha cries out,“Cut! That was great, ladies. Reset! We’ll be shooting from Sora’s POV next.”

On my way back to my mark, I stop to tell Minjee, “You were amazing.”

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
Articles you may like